Alabama gymnastics wins No. 106 over Auburn

Alabama’s Ashley Sledge performs on the floor exercise. She scored a 9.9.

Michelle Lepianka Carter

By Marc TorrenceSpecial to The Tuscaloosa News

Published: Saturday, February 16, 2013 at 3:30 a.m.

Last Modified: Saturday, February 16, 2013 at 12:05 a.m.

TUSCALOOSA | Marissa Gutierrez walked over to Diandra Milliner after Kim Jacob emphatically sealed the University of Alabama gymnastics team’s win against Auburn with an electric floor routine.

“Well,” Gutierrez said she told Milliner. “Got that 106.”

No. 5 Alabama defeated Auburn for the 106th straight time Friday with a 197.65 to 196.575 victory over the No. 15 Tigers in a soldout Coleman Coliseum. The Crimson Tide posted season-high scores on three events and blew away its previous season-high total of 196.95.

The win snapped a two-meet losing streak and gives Alabama a 4-2 record overall and in the Southeastern Conference.

“It really feels great to be apart of the 106,” Jacob said. “We’re a part of the tradition that kept it going. That was our goal this week — to keep it going. But more importantly to get the score we needed and improve.”

The Crimson Tide finally put together a complete meet for the first time in 2013, and it couldn’t have come at a better time.

In its first meet after the halfway point of the season, the two-time defending national champions looked like they could win a third in a row for the first time all year. Alabama didn’t have a fall or step out of bounds and did all of the little things right needed to compete at a championship level.

“This is the meet that we were looking for,” coach Sarah Patterson said. “We weren’t perfect, but they stepped it up on all levels. We have done this in practice but we just hadn’t done it in competition yet. Tonight, it shows that this team can be one of the best in the country.”

The meet was sealed in the third rotation, when the Tigers’ Lexus Demers fell on floor, then Toi Garcia subsequently stepped out of bounds. Meanwhile, the Crimson Tide posted a season-high score on balance beam and the fourth-highest beam score in the country and led by an entire point.

On the final rotation, Alabama posted a season-high score on the floor to clinch the win.

“If you’re going to win a championship, that’s where you’re going to have to do it [on beam],” Patterson said. “They were on fire on vault and they were on fire on floor. It’s a good place to be right now and I’m very proud because they worked very hard this week.”

Alabama’s other season-high score came during the first rotation on vault.

Junior Kim Jacob was held out of the all-around for the first time all season. Senior Ashley Priess competed on floor for just the second time all year. Freshman Lauren Beers vaulted for the third time, her fourth overall competitive routine this season. No UA gymnast competed on more than three events.

The meet will be replayed on Tuesday Feb 19 at 8 p.m. on CSS.

Alabama hits the road next week to take on the Arkansas Razorbacks.

Scores

Vault

Kaitlyn Clark 9.825

Ashley Sledge 9.9

Kayla Williams 9.85

Lauren Beers 9.875

Marissa Gutierrez 9.925

Diandra Milliner 9.925

Total 49.475

Uneven bars

Ashley Sledge 9.9

Becca Alexin 9.825

Kim Jacob 9.775

Kaitlyn Clark 9.8

Sarah DeMeo 9.875

Ashley Priess 9.85

Total 49.25

Balance beam

Diandra Milliner 9.825

Kaitlyn Clark 9.85

Kayla Williams 9.9

Sarah DeMeo 9.9

Ashley Priess 9.875

Kim Jacob 9.9

Total 49.425

Floor

Ashley Priess 9.875

Ashley Sledge 9.9

Lora Leigh Frost 9.825

Marissa Gutierrez 9.925

Diandra Milliner 9.9

Kim Jacob 9.9

Total 49.5

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